The aurora borealis over Lofoten, Norway

© arnaudbertrande/Getty Image

Skies light up over Norway. When science looks like magic

The mechanics of the northern lights are still not fully understood, as there are multiple influences and atmospheric conditions that create these photogenic ripples of colored light in the sky. Scientists agree that solar winds—big pulses of energy from our sun—interfere with the Earth’s magnetic fields, especially at the polar regions. The result is a ghostly light show in the sky—like the one in our photo today, captured in Norway.